“Yep, that’s Tony.”
Naomi bit her lips, trying but failing to hold back the amusement that welled up. “Relative of yours?”
Liam chuckled. “No, he’s the real thing. The cat is Maria.”
Choking back a sudden laugh had her coughing. “Tony and Maria, in the West Side Inn? Are you kidding me?”
He grinned, shaking his head, but gestured to the table. “Sit.” He grabbed a bowl along with a spoon and a knife, and some pats of butter, bringing them to the table while she slid onto a chair. “What’d you like to drink?”
“Um, I don’t know, what do they have?” She asked, opening the thermos and pouring some of the soup into the bowl. It smelled heavenly, and she leaned over to sniff at the aromatic steam.
“Coffee, and there’s hot water for tea, and also packets of hot cocoa and instant cider…although in the mornings and evenings the cocoa and mulled cider are fresh made. In the daytime there’s also home-made lemonade.”
“I don’t think I can handle coffee,” Naomi said, placing a hand to her stomach. “At least, not at the moment. How about some of the instant cocoa?”
As Liam waited for the electric kettle to boil the water, Naomi took her first spoonful of the soup, and her eyes widened. “Oh, wow!”
Liam looked over at her. “Good, huh?”
“Campbell’s sure never made anything this good!” Naomi had another spoonful. “I think she’s in the wrong business.”
Liam just laughed, coming back over to her with her cup of cocoa, placing it on the table beside her. He took the baguette from its paper wrapping and cut a few slices, placing them on a plate and pushing it toward her.
“You need some solid food as well.”
“I know,” she admitted, slathering some of the butter onto a slice and biting in. “Mmph,” she approved around a mouthful of bread.
Liam just laughed. “Okay, so, this being a bed and breakfast, there’s food in the morning. The dining room officially opens for breakfast at six or six-thirty, I forget. I just know it’s open every morning when I come down at seven. Anyway, they serve breakfast until nine. It’s buffet style, with eggs, bacon and sausage, hash browns, fruit, juices. And a selection of baked goods… muffins and so forth. On weekends, Renee puts out a waffle and omelet bar.”
He fixed her with a stern glance. “You’re going to remember to set your alarm, and be down here to get a good breakfast, right?”
Holding up her right hand, Naomi said, solemnly, “I swear.” Then, just for good measure, she crossed her heart.
Liam sat back in his chair. “Okay, then. The girls said to tell you they’ll be over noon-ish. I think Tamera took the afternoon off from the clinic so she could have some time to spend with you and Katerina.” He chuckled. “Those two have pretty much been joined at the hip ever since I’ve been here. Them and Jacinth.”
Naomi paused, her soup spoon halfway to her mouth. “Since you’ve been here? You’re not from here originally?”
“Not at all. I’ve been getting my degrees, then doing residencies and so forth. I’ve just moved here to intern at the veterinary clinic where Douglas and Troy are partners. I haven’t been here but a week.”
“So these people are all new to you as well,” she observed.
“Yes, that’s so. Although, you got a small taste of this crowd earlier. Trust me when I say that, after a week, it’ll be like you’ve known them your whole life!”
She chuckled, casting the brief meeting through a mental review. “I can see that.”
“Oh, I forgot.” Liam stood, and strode across the room to the fireplace, lifting the bag he’d left there. He returned with a rectangular box in his hand, and placed it before her. “Cell phone.”
“Ah-ah!” He lifted his hand, stopping her as she opened her mouth to protest. “Maroulla’s orders. You need to be able to contact us any time.”
She blinked at him. “Who’s this Maroulla?” she ventured cautiously. “I think you mentioned her before, but I don’t entirely remember.”
“Oh, that’s right.” Liam settled into his chair once more. He gestured to the box. “You’ve got everyone’s phone numbers programmed in there. Me, Katerina and Tamera and Jacinth, also the vet clinic, the B&B, and Maroulla Kazakis. Now, Maroulla is the Warden for the Northeastern United States. Think of it as being your district’s Representative to the House. Basically, she looks out for the welfare of all the shifters residing here in the Northeast. She’s the one I went to, when I found out you were a shifter, and she’s the one who arranged to have the zoo release you to us. She’s also Katerina’s grandmother.”
Naomi bit her lip, thinking that over. Okay, she could see why this Maroulla would care whether she had a phone or not. She opened the box and looked at the phone lying in it, then turned over the lid to look at it again. Her startled gaze flew to Liam.
“It’s an iPhone!”
He laughed, nodding. “We shifters don’t usually do things half-way. It’s all paid for, and the first month of basic service… unlimited calling and texting in the U.S. Once you get your bank card back, you can access your account and change the plan to your liking.” He pointed to a slip of paper in the box, that held the address of the local cell company and her account information.
